


An Unexpected Turn of Events

by BrightDarkness_2013



Category: Rockman.EXE | Mega Man Battle Network
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-02
Updated: 2017-07-06
Packaged: 2018-05-11 06:28:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 14,445
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5616886
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BrightDarkness_2013/pseuds/BrightDarkness_2013
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>I just kept going back to sleep mode. Going back to sleep mode. Going back to sleep mode. Only to find that I still woke up in the same place. I was still in this wreckage. Trapped. Why hadn't anyone come looking for me yet? Had Enzan forgotten about me so easily?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

I just kept going back to sleep mode. Going back to sleep mode. Going back to sleep mode. Only to find that I still woke up in the same place. I was still in this wreckage. Trapped. Why hadn't anyone come looking for me yet? Had Enzan forgotten about me so easily? No. He wouldn't. I have been his closest friend all his life. He wouldn't just leave me to just sit here in this unless he had to. I drew in a breath and let it out. Maybe he had thought that the PET had gotten crushed in the destruction. I rested my head on my knees. The last time I had felt this helpless… Have I ever felt this helpless before?... Not that I can recall but I do remember feeling useless before.

Enzan was little then. His mother had died. He had taken to locking himself in his room after that. The sad, lonely, and maybe a little depressed look was almost too much to look at on a regular basis. It was such a heart wrenching sight. I had tried so many things to coax him out of that state. However he got annoyed or upset at my attempts to get him to leave his room, think a little happier, etc… When I had asked him whether his mother would have preferred him to enjoy his life rather than cutting himself off from the world… well that got me thrown into a desk drawer for an hour or so. Not my best idea but I had to start somewhere. When he finally pulled the PET out he admitted that she probably wouldn't have been happy about his decision. So I asked him whether he was going to come to terms with the fact that he had to move on.

Back in the drawer…

I really didn't know how to deal with kids at that time. I relied on common sense to deal with things. Facing the issue was the only way to solve it. Though while Enzan was a bright kid he was just that, a kid. Facing an issue isn't what kids want to do. That and death is hard on a child. Especially if it was their mother. Took a while for him to finally decide to bring me back out. When he did though he was silent. Figuring that I should probably apologize I did just that. Then through the whole phase I had either kept my mouth shut or offered carefully chosen words of encouragement. None of it really helped and he had basically gone through the trouble by himself.

Then there was that time I had gotten left behind when he went to a park. He came back crying and covered in dirt which I was sure if his father was there he would have gotten scolded. 'No need for tears or smiles' apparently. He sat on his bed crying and I couldn't do anything about it. Having no physical being I could do nothing to comfort him. It took a while to coax the information out of him. After all he hadn't wanted to talk about it and I didn't want to push the subject too far and anger him. That usually ended up with me thrown into the desk drawer. Apparently some larger kid had bullied him. That seemed to be the norm for a while. He'd go out and play and come back crying. He quit going much to my relief. I had started running out of things to say to him. Repeating things never had much of an impact.

So we ended up talking a lot more after he quit leaving. We really couldn't do much but talk. We'd talk, I'd fetch certain files or games for him when needed, help him with homework that probably wasn't meant for a child his age, and that was really it. Not much you can do when you have no physical form. However he started taking me along when he went places instead of leaving me in his bedroom. I stayed silent unless he specifically spoke to me as to not cause any problems or interrupt anything. It turned out that silence was usually the best way to deal with things around him. He confided in me and actually spoke of the matters that bothered him without me having to ask him for it and slowly drag it out of the kid. He was a handful that was for sure but it was worth it to see him smile when he looked at me.

On a warm summer day he had been looking out the window. The longing look was obvious in the reflection on the glass. I had just told him to go outside after a while. Nothing was going to change if he just stared at the grass and birds. He was silent for a bit and I started to think over what I had said in search of something in those words that could have possibly upset him. Yet when he turned to look at me I saw no anger or sadness. He simply questioned if I would be lonely. After assuring him that I would not be he looked back out the window for a bit before turning back to me and asking whether I'd like to see the park. I had declined the offer and he frowned before doing what kids do best and not taking no for an answer no matter what you said. In the end he took me along. The problem was the bully never actually went away. It was like the pasts previous problems had just been waiting for him. Just exactly how much trouble had I caused him over the years due to my inability to do anything?

He walked around the little playground and the grassy field and chatted happily. I listened intently like I usually did when a rather stuck up sounding voice played and made the users presence known. Enzan quickly became quiet. All lightheartedness of the situation was gone before he even turned to face the larger boy. He shrunk away from each insult. Ranging from his clothes to his hair to his lifestyle. Each cold laugh seemed to pierce right through his protective walls that I noticed him building over time. Honestly the boy reminded me of a jackal or a wolf. Searching for his new prey and hunting in a pack that was weaker than him in strength. After who knew how many comments I spoke up and told him off. Enzan seemed a bit surprised. His gaze went down to me. The boy sneered and made a few comments about him having a PET at his age and something about not being responsible enough to take care of it. A moment later he snatched the PET from him and took off with another of his cold laughs. The other boys lagged behind.

Once hidden behind one of the few trees in the park he sneered at me through the screen. I spoke calmly saying that just because his life was poor that didn't mean he had to take it out on others. He quickly dropped the cocky attitude and glared at me. He demanded what I meant so I responded with 'I mean no one likes you for acting this way. Do you think those kids follow you because they like you? They follow you because they're scared of you.' At that everything went downhill. He glared at me and argued and went through the whole denial comments and at some point in the… 'discussion' he decided that enough was enough. Shouting something about me asking for it he dropped the PET and picked up the nearest hard object. Saying I was going to be sorry he raised the item I now identified as a standard rock he regained his sneer. I sighed more worried about Enzan's reaction to my demise. I closed my eyes though no one could tell and awaited the blow.

I opened them again however when I heard said childs yell. I was surprised to find that Enzan had tackled the older boy that he had been so afraid of. However that was the only real hit he got on him. Due to Enzan being younger and much less muscled he was quickly thrown to the side and I could do nothing but watch as he was hit and shoved to the ground several times. After what had seemed like an eternity he pulled a quick escape. Snatching up the PET he took off. Shouts following him. Once safely back inside the house he fled to his room and just like last time settled on his bed covered in dirt. He was breathing heavily and I spoke a soft apology after a minute. He shook his head. A small smile graced his features as he thanked me for sticking up for him and I think that was one of the last smiles I got from him in a while. His walls were quickly built after many lessons from tutors and his fathers scoldings at emotions in general.

I sighed and pulled myself from my memories. I looked at the scrap metal prison the PET had been trapped in for days now. I reverted to sitting crosslegged. I shifted my position several times as time went by. I debated on whether I should just go back to sleep mode again. I leaned against the side of the screen and started to do just that. I quickly became alert as I heard metal being overturned and shoved to the side. He came back for me. The metal scrap that was now hardly identifiable was moved out of the way slowly. The tension almost felt like it was killing me. Three days stuck in this mess was enough for me. I wanted out. I wanted to go back to assisting my Operator. I now knew what boredom and doubt was and I didn't like it. Wham! The metal was tossed to the side.

Hope crushed.

Two dirty and poor looking teenagers stood before me. A female and a younger male. They looked to be siblings but how would I know for sure? The girl smiled a smile that put me on edge though I refused to show it. She looked to her possible brother who had gained a similar expression.

"How much do you think we can sell it for?"


	2. Chapter 2

Now what? No one was listening to a word that I was saying… Well I knew my worth now at least. Just fifty dollars. Those kids seemed happy. The cost, I suppose made sense. The PEt was most likely damaged. Also they took the first offer that they were given… At least I was out of that disaster area. The place was pretty unstable. Something may have given out and actually crushed the PET. Out of the ruins of a building and onto a countertop. Then again now that I was out of there he wouldn't be able to find me. Just perfect. Out of the frying pan and into the freezer really. With how things are going I'll end up in the fire with someone promoting Darkloid. Plus this guy wasn't reconsidering his decision of not helping me. Didn't even bother hearing me out. All I got was a sharp glare and a quick shut up or be quiet. Apparently he wasn't having a very good day. Honestly I hoped that was it. Because if he was naturally like that I would be in trouble. No chance at seeing Enzan ever again.

Maybe I could convince someone walking into this junk store to send a message for me. That would be my best bet. The man sat down at the counter. The clacking of a keyboard was the only sound besides the ticking of a cheap clock. An antique that I was a little surprised at its working condition. I took a quick look around from my limited view. Things from new to ancient were displayed on shelves and tables. The more supposeably expensive things sat in glass cases. The place looked like it hadn't been dusted in a while. The limited view I had was rather bothersome since I couldn't get a look outside. Though I knew that it would make no difference if I knew where I was or not I still wanted some idea. My gaze traveled to the man. I studied him since I hadn't bothered to before. Why not know the face of the person I was stuck with until who knew when?

He looked rather old. Didn't seem like a very friendly person by the look of it but then again I may just be connecting his look to the first experience I had with him. His hair was an old mixture of white and gray and he was balding at the top. What hair he had was messy to say the very least. It look like he hadn't even bothered with it in a long while. Few days to a week maybe. The bags under his dark eyes and the way his stiff hands made a shape as he hunched over in his chair gave away to the sleepless nights and stress. His dull eyes flicked to me as I shifted my position to sitting crosslegged like I had in the darkness of those unstable ruins. He didn't appear to be glaring at me in that short moment in time so maybe he wasn't so bad.

There I stayed for the next two hours. Just watching the stranger go about his business in a very lazy almost scatterbrained fashion. Then the door open and someone walked in.

"Hi, Ignis." Came the voice of a child.

"Hey kid. Your dad sending you on his errands again?" He asked as the child came into view.

He was a small brunette and he smiled happily like he hadn't a care in the world. The shirt he wore held the picture of what I assumed was a popular cartoon character saying some catchphrase that most kids would be thrilled to say and hear. His jeans had a few holes in them but they seemed very old in his defense. The shirt however looked much newer so it was an interesting pairing.

"Yeah. Here's the money for what he ordered." The child offered a decent sum of cash and the man I now identified as Ignis took it.

"Just wait here and I'll get the parts for you." He smiled.

Maybe he really wasn't that bad. I watched him enter the back room with the child. The child looked around the shop with little interest as he waited, rocking back and forth from his heels to his toes. I stood.

"Excuse me."

The kid quickly caught sight of me. He seemed a little surprised. His interest quickly drawn he approached. He gave me a perplexed look.

"I didn't know Ignis sold Navi's." He eyed me curiously.

I couldn't give him an answer for that so I just cast the statement to the side.

"I was wondering if you-"

The door opened and he quit listening. Ignis walked out with a little box in his hands. Setting it on the counter he pulled out a roll of packing tape and sealed it up.

"PET catch your attention did it?" He asked handing the kid the box.

"When did you start selling PETs?"

"Technically just a couple of hours ago or so. A pair walked in with saying it was abandoned."

"Someone abandoned it?" The kid frowned sadly. "Why would someone do that?"

"I wouldn't know kiddo. Now get going before your dad starts to wonder where you are."

"... How much are you selling it for?"

"Actually I was thinking of taking it apart."

What? I take it back. Not a nice person.

"What?!" The kid looked horrified. "You can't do that!"

"It's damaged anyway Claus. No point in trying to sell it." Ignis attempted to reason but Claus wouldn't have it.

"No you're wrong. I'll buy it."

"Do you even have any money kid?" He looked sceptical.

"Well no, but I can make some. How much will you sell it for?"

"Oh I don't know… If you can make fifty dollars by the end of the week I'll give it to you."

"Ok!" The kid smiled but soon lost it. "Wait… what are you going to do with it at the end of the week?"

"Kid I have things that need part to be fixed and there are a few things in these PETs that I can use. Remember that little machine in the back? If I wipe the main chip I can fix it. Then-"

"That isn't fair. You can't just kill harmless things for your own benefit."

"Its a program kid."

"He's not an it. How would you feel in his position?"

"It doesn't have feelings-"

"Does to." Claus argued.

Ignis sighed. "Just go."

"I want a full week." He pressed.

"Fine." He reluctantly agreed.

Claus walked out with a triumphant skip in his step. Ignis eyed me. I said nothing and after a minute he went about his business once again.


	3. Chapter 3

For the next couple of days I sat in silence as people came in occasionally and looked at the old content rather than buying. Ignis as I had learned that he was called moved around the shop stiffly with a large fake smile. Trying his hardest to try and sell something, anything. Though his efforts were all in vain. The potential customers left without spending anything. I watched as he sat down with an exasperated sigh.

"... Try dusting."

"Huh?"

"The amount of dust present and smudges on the objects and glass will decrease sales by about 35%."

He stared at me for a moment. "And just what gives you the right to order me around?"

"I didn't mean to offend. It was just a suggestion."

He mumbled something as he went back to his computer. I took another glance around the room from my limited view. Everything besides the actual requests that he worked on were old and didn't look very appealing. So maybe offering to buy the useless modern tech would bring in more people. Then in addition he could fix those items up and resell them. He would have a much easier time. More income and a higher chance of selling the antiques. First off was dusting though. Feigning success would be better than trying to have someone feel bad enough to buy out of pity. Day four of that week and the old man started wiping down surfaces. He 'made it clear' that he was doing it because he wanted to and not because I suggested it. I tried my luck later that same day.

"Have you considered buying more modern items?"

"This is an antique store." He reminded coldly.

"That may be so, but buying, repairing, and selling may not be such a bad idea. More income and a higher chance of selling what you already have."

"Che. Whether you try and help me or not I'm still going to take you apart."

"I figured."

And so on fifth day some old clock was sold and I caught the look Ignis gave me. One of mild curiosity. Day six and he started advertising that he would buy broken electronics with a on the window. Hopefully that would catch enough attention for him get along fine. The old man wasn't too bad. I had learned of his dead wife and the son who had died in a car crash a year ago. He really hadn't been one of the lucky ones of late. So I suppose that in turn gave him to be a little cold. He did however like the boy, Claus. He reminded him of his son apparently. Day seven. Tomorrow I'd be taken apart. The base chip that kept the PET running would be of use to him apparently. I suppose that was enough of a reason. My last day was spent watching the man moving here and there as usual. This was the day. Ignis took a seat at the counter. He looked the PET over.

"If Claus doesn't show up you're not going to see another day."

"I am aware."

"... That's it? Not going to beg for your life or anything?"

"Why when it would only delay the inevitable?"

"Psh. You're something special alright." He scoffed as he set the PET back down.

Several minutes later and Claus came running through the door.

"I-... Ignis." He gasped. "P- please don't… kill him."

So I was to be deleted. Claus slapped the crumpled bills on the counter and the wad was accompanied with the musical clink of change. Hadn't seen actual money in a Long time. I had to wonder just how he got it. Ignis sifted through the mass. He was counting it casually as Claus gasped and caught his breath.

"Thirty four seventy eight." Ignis spoke.

"I- I'll get the rest. Promise. I'll even work around the shop for free and - and-"

"Bah. Just take the damn thing."

He shoved the PET across the countertop and Claus just caught it as it almost fell off.

"But I thought-"

"Just take it and go before I change my mind." Ignis turned away.

Claus smiled broadly at the man who had turned his back. "Thank you, Ignis. I'll make it up to you somehow."

With that he skipped out of the shop and down the street with the PET in hand.  
\---------------------------  
Enzan was determined to search. After being confined to a bed after an explosion that had occurred by a mostly unknown enemy and then finding out that Netto and his friends had come back empty handed when they went to search the site had invented little pinpricks of doubt and yet built up hope at the same time. Having not found him was better than finding him broken. So just because they haven't been able to locate him didn't mean that they couldn't yet. If there was one thing Netto had taught him it was never to give up. Not that he'd ever give up on Blues. So he set out to find his Navi with a new determination that day with Netto and his friends. Having decided to check the area again before deciding anything else that was where they were headed. However once at site in question halfway through the area Netto pointed out something that was different since the last time that they had been there. On the first floor of the area there was many things turned over. Enzan grimaced at the thought of his PET, Blues, falling down from the third floor. Things would have to be just right for the PET to come out unscathed, without breaking even. The second and third had been untouched and so the investigation was on.  
\-----------------------------  
This boy chatted on and on almost nonstop in his free time. However I had the patience to deal with it. I had spent many years with an emotionally broken child so a child who was happy go lucky most of the time should be easy to handle. The only problem was trying to get the kid to help me. Most likely he wasn't going to want to give me up after all the work he went through to scavenge that money to save me. Children were children and I had learned a long time ago that they didn't think logically and thought more selfishly.

His mother had almost the same personality as her son. However with being a doting mother she tended to be a bit of a clean freak. She could only relax completely with a clean house. At which point she sat back with a book or watched TV. The father I had yet to see. Not that it really mattered I suppose. It was obvious that he wasn't dead as Claus met me through his father needed a machine part for whatever reason. I was thankful for that. No dead parents meant that things should be rather easygoing.

Claus was good with math and science, but rather lacking with most other subjects so that ended up with me back to helping with a childs homework. As much as it was nice to get a change of pace I hadn't gotten any closer to getting back to Enzan. If anything I had gotten further. If the kid would just plug me into the net I could probably get somewhere where I could contact him or one of his friends. But the kid hadn't even gotten close to such a thing. I was in a bad situation sure, but it was still better than getting taken apart. From the frying pan to the freezer and now I was in neither. At least I wasn't in the fire.

"When am I ever going to use this?"

I pulled myself out of my thoughts at Claus' whining.

"Everyday."

Claus dropped his head onto the English textbook with an exasperated groan.

"The sooner you get this done the sooner you can do what you'd rather be doing."

"We can NetBattle with my friends?" He looked up.

I took a moment. "... It's late isn't it?"

"I guess. Tomorrow then?"

"Could you please focus? You're almost done."

"I'll take that as a yes!" The scratching of a pencil on paper dominated the new silence.

I shifted slightly. Honestly battling with this kid made me uncomfortable. It made me feel like I'd be betraying Enzan in a way.


	4. Chapter 4

It was a Thursday. The sun was shining brightly while birds sung and whistled merrily. A gentle breeze was blowing, enticing animals and the occasional insect to come out and witness the new day for themselves. Claus arose reluctantly and drowsily at his mother's calling. A slightly irritated and soft 'I'm up' coming from him as he slipped out of the warmth that his bed brought. I kept quiet as he went about a slow morning ritual. Clothes, bathroom, checking his backpack, scanning the room for any items that could possibly be forgotten. He slowly woke up as things went on and his cheery personality gradually returned. Before I knew it he was scooping up the PET with a large smile before bolting down the stairs with his backpack. His mother greeted him warmly as he jumped the last three steps.

"What's for breakfast? Do I get pancakes?"

"You can't have pancakes every morning." She laughed a little as she presented him with hashbrowns, eggs, and toast. A glass of orange juice soon followed.

"Every other morning then?" He asked hopefully.

She rolled her eyes and offered a maybe in response. At that he eagerly ate the freshly made breakfast like it was the last meal he'd ever see. It was good to know that he appreciated his mother and her cooking, but you'd think he'd like to savor it a little more. At least take the time to taste it. I knew Enzan would do anything to have just a bite of his mother's cooking again.

"How did you both sleep?"

"Great!" Claus spoke through a mouthful of food.

"Careful. Don't talk with your mouth full." She chided halfheartedly like she had done it a thousand times before, which I didn't doubt, before turning her attention to me. "And you?"

"It was a rather pleasant night."

"That's good to hear." Her smile was warm as she went about wiping down the counter as hot water filled the sink slowly.

I cast a glance around as the two went about their business. A soft humming played in the background with the chirping of the birds. The counter was made of a dark multi colored marble and the cabinets were painted a soft white. A bold color as it tended to get dirty far easier. However the color and the fact that the windows were void of any curtains made the room look much bigger than it was. The tiled floor had a black and white checkered theme to it. All of the appliances were neatly tucked away against the wall on the back counter, no cords showing. School report cards and drawings were held to the refrigerator by little cat and dog magnets. A little dry erase clipboard stuck to the side of the fridge and held a calendar with a little erasable marker to add in events and such. Apparently his mother planned to go shopping tomorrow. Dentist for Claus on the 22nd this month. Bank next Tuesday. Sammy's Birthday on the 19th. Wonder who Sammy is...

Claus downed the glass of juice as his mother turned off the water before piling dishes in.

"Almost ready to go?"

"Mmmhmm!" Claus nearly tripped on the chair leg, but caught himself before starting toward the door, which by the look I had of the house yesterday, was to the garage.

"Your lunch, Claus." His mother called without turning around.

"Oh yeah." He spun on his heel, snatched it from off the counter and headed back out while his mother grabbed her keys.

Claus was quickly in the back seat.

"Seatbelt."

"Got it."

"Homework?" She started the car.

"Yep."

"Any problems with it?"

"Nope."

Well that was a lie…

"You sure?" The garage door opened and she pulled out.

"Blues helped me. It's fine."

"Did you brush your teeth?" Checking both ways she pulled onto the street and was off.

"Yep. But then I ate so…"

"Did you brush your hair?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure? It doesn't look like it."

"I did! I promise!"

He protested and she just stifled her laugh into a hum.

"Did you drop your laundry down the shoot?"

"Uh… No."

She sighed, but said nothing.

"It's not that much."

"Maybe not now, but it piles up. Remember last time? You had the start on the small mountain behind your door."

"It was not that big."

"You could barely open it."

"That was just because it was behind the door."

"And why was it there in the first place?"

"It seemed like a good idea at the time."

"What am I going to do with you?"

"I love you?"

"I love you too, baby."

She pulled up in front of the school.

"Bye, mom!" Claus was out the door and heading toward the school the moment it stopped.

She waved back and pulled away before disappearing around the corner. Then Claus practically skipped through the double doors. Well at least with his happy go lucky personality he would, I hope, be harder to upset than Enzan was growing up. If not then he wouldn't stay angry with me for as long.

The school was pretty large for a school of such young children. Pretty clean. Lots of chatter though. I didn't catch the name on the way in, but my assumption was that the school was either very popular, it was more for the rich, or a school got shut down in the past and they had to add more to it to make sure they could hold all of the children. A great number of children were in each classroom or in the hallways. Talking of various topics ranging from pets and parents to food and chores. Then of course there was the quiet gossip that would be slowly passed around and spread until it reached the one person who would speak of it boldly and thus turn it into the talk of the student body for a while until something new came up.

I caught sight of the janitor trying to wipe away some skid marks on the cheaply tiled floor as Claus went up the second staircase. So not for the rich. That narrows it down a bit, but that was still nothing I could have passed along if I somehow got into the net.

Down the hall and to the left Claus entered the classroom. Kids chatted happily. A couple of boys were picking on a girl who wasn't all bark as she shoved one of them. The boys 'oohed' as she shot back some sarcastic remark before storming across the room only to take a seat in a desk covered in glittering stickers. A few girls stood in what I had dubbed gossip circles long ago. Each whispering in turn and giggling. The blond with the braid looked up at the boy doodling on the front board absentmindedly before snickering. The other two followed suit. Though it didn't seem too bad really as another pointed to a redhead making the short haired brunette blush and shake her head.

Then there was a boy with his nose in a book. A math book to be precise. He ran a hand through his midnight hair nervously. It was this boy who Claus approached.

"Hey, Lucas. Skip out on math again?" Claus spoke up making the other boy jump, but he recovered quickly.

"Not everyone can be a math genius like you." He pouted a bit before turning in his seat to face his friend.

"You really shouldn't let that sit until the last minute if it takes you so long to do it. I could help you, ya know."

"No offense, but you're a bad teacher. You just did the work for me last time I asked you for help."

There was a small debate before I was brought to their attention much to my dismay.

"What'd you do to it? It's all beat up."

"Nothing. He was all beat up when I got him from Ignis. He was abandoned."

"What? Really? Why?"

"I dunno, but I bought him myself and saved him." Claus seemed to be glowing with pride. "Ignis was gonna take him apart."

"Huh… Mr. Bonapart sells Navis now?"

"I'm not sure. Blues was the only one there that I saw."

"How much did ya pay and where'd you get the money?"

"Ignis wanted fifty for him, but he gave me a discount so I bought him for thirty four dollars. Mrs. Vale and some other neighbors paid me for running errands for them."

"Really… You should tell Danny. Maybe then he'll quit bragging about his Navi."

"I highly doubt it. But I'll challenge him and I'll win. Then he'll see."

"Do you even know how to battle?"

Yes do you even know how? Honestly I was half and half on the subject. If he didn't then hopefully he'd back down, but I doubted it. He was too determined. So there was a chance I'd be, well I wouldn't say crushed, more like take a beating from a navi far lower than my own level due to the childs incompetence in the ways of battle. But on the other hand if he miraculously did then I would have to fight a battle and cooperate with an operator that wasn't mine. That wasn't Enzan. And that felt like a betrayal within itself.

"Well I've never done it before, but I've seen dad fight virus' before. Also with the chips that he gave me almost a year ago I think I have pretty good understanding."

"You mean the ones he didn't need because he never used them?"

"What's wrong with that?"

"That might not be enough."

"Oh whatever, CHIPPY."

Chippy? What was a chippy?

"I chipped my tooth a year ago." Lucas protested.

"Yeah, but it's still funny."

"Are you never going to let me live that down?"

"Nope." He replied with a large grin. "That cat didn't want-"

"STOP right There. It looked like it was stuck, ok?"

Claus just snickered.

"Shut up."

That was when the bell rang. Within a span of two minutes all the children were in their seats and the teacher was at the front of the room.

"Alright class I hope you all enjoyed your spring break. Would anyone like to share what they did?"

"Oh! Oh! I would! Me me!" Some excited boy at the front was practically bouncing in his seat.

"Yes, Matthew. Go ahead."

"Looks like Matty forgot to take his pills this morning."

"Or too much of it."

The hushed comments flew back and forth as the over excited child ignored it and flew into a rather wild story that couldn't have possibly taken place.


	5. Chapter 5

I was very aware of the glaring contests that were going on between Lucas, Claus, and this blond boy on the other side of the room whenever the teacher's back was turned. My assumption was that this was Danny. He was had a sneer that reminded me of a jackal just like that one older boy who had bullied Enzan as a child. An animal that preys on anything smaller than itself. An aggressive scavenger really. Then came the throwing of minor items like erasers and balled up paper making the other kids glance over and duck on multiple occasions. The blond girl with the braid hissed that them to quit it a few times. The little war stopped for a minute or two before they were at it again.

"Mr. O'lair! Danny, Claus, and Lucas are distracting me again!" The girl complained rather loudly when a stray paper hit her in the back of the head.

The teacher sighed. "Boys can't you behave for one day?"

"Not with them." Danny huffed and leaned back in his seat.

"He started it." Lucas glared at Danny who gave him a smug smirk back.

"That is enough. This is the only warning you are going to get. If this continues you will be sitting in the hallway outside the principal's office and I will be forced to call your parents and document a report on the incident… Again. And we don't want that, do we?"

"No."

"Good. Now can you tell me why you're all arguing This time?"

"He's mean."

"They're annoying brats."

"Am not!"

"Shut up!"

"You shut up!"

"How mature."

"Says the one who told me to shut up."

"Boys! Let's not start this again. Now Danny it's not nice to… nevermind. Lets make this simple. Take anymore of my time I will take some of yours. I'm sure you don't want to stay after school and clean up, right."

"No."

"Not a chance."

"Thought so. Now where was I?"

And so the lecture continued. The glaring went back and forth as usual, but they quit throwing things, thankfully. Time went by rather evenly and I ended up paying more attention to the teacher than Claus and his glaring war. Every once in awhile I'd glance at them to see if they had decided to pay attention to the material they were being taught, but that hope was in vain. When the bell rang the teacher left with a sigh of relief after telling everyone to be back by this time and to be safe and what not. It was more directed at the three who still hadn't severed their glares, but they didn't seem to notice. As soon as the door closed they were up with the rest of the class. Lunches were brought out, talking started up, others left the room. The minor chaos from this morning had reawakened. Lucas and Claus watched Danny leave the room with several others before they relaxed.

"Bout time."

"I'll show him. I'll wipe that smug look off his face, I will."

"I'd like to see that, but are you sure that's such a good idea?"

"He won't know what hit him. Burstman is going down, right Blues?"

He was grinning at me rather excitedly.

"I have to agree with, Lucas. This isn't a good idea."

"What do you mean?"

"There is a lot to NetBattling that-"

"But I Know we can beat him." He protested.

"How can you be certain when you have no experience?"

"I helped dad and Dashman with virus' once. Water is good against fire and fire against wood and stuff. I know stuff and things. I promise."

"Having knowledge is a good first step, however-"

"Well I couldn't take a next step at all without a navi, but now I have you."

"Don't you think that starting with simple virus' in the net would be a better idea first instead of jumping right into a battle with someone who has had a navi for a longer period of time?"

"Blues, come ooonnn. There's nothing to worry about. He's a rich arrogant snob and I know we can do this."

"This won't end well for either of us."

"Trust is a better next step than battle experience so trust me. We'll do fine."

I sighed and he grinned brightly. There was no way that I was going to talk him out of this. Why did I bother trying? I suppose this wouldn't be the first time that I've had to fight alone. It's been so long since I've had to, but I'd endure like I've always done.  
\-------------------  
I stayed silent as Claus and Lucas went about actively hunting down Danny. I was really hoping that they wouldn't find him, but I knew that even if they didn't find him now then they would find him later. This couldn't be avoided forever. So down a staircase and through many rooms they went. Asking various others of Danny's whereabouts. Then out to the little courtyard that the school surrounded they went. A single tall tree stood in its center and several benches were placed in around the area. Danny sat with several other students still holding that cocky smirk upon his features as he chatted on. The two boys were quickly out the door.

"Danny! I challenge you to a NetBattle!"

"Oh you want to start something?" He challenged as he stood up, the other two standing with him.

"I do. I Challenge you and you are going to lose."

"You're challenging me with That hunk of junk? Where'd you get that? From a trashcan?"

"Say that again when I beat you into the ground."

"Alright, brat, I accept your challenge. Just don't start crying when Burstman and I destroy your pathetic excuse for a navi."

And so it began and no sooner was a staring down the just as cocky Burstman. His smirk matched his operators and I stayed stoic as per usual.

"Ready for a beat down?" He pointed his blaster at me.

I chose to say nothing. There was nothing to gain from talking to him nor his operator. I didn't quite understand why Claus associated himself with Danny. He could easily avoid him and stay out of trouble in the process.

"Che. This is going to be easier than I thought if you're too damaged to even speak."

"Alright lets end this quick. Cannon battle chip in! Download!"

I was quick to jump back and evade. Burstman quickly gave chase with several shots that I evaded with practiced ease. I was thankful that he wasn't a tough opponent. I doubted that it would do much damage if it hit me, but I would prefer not taking any damage. Come on Claus. Don't freeze up. You're the one who was so confident in this.

"Shotgun battle chip in! Download!"

Jump back, spin to let one of the blasts ease by me so I wouldn't take damage. Land and prepare to dodge again. Hope Claus gives me something so I can hit him… Sidestep. Duck.

He drew in fast, but I had seen way faster. I kicked his blaster up before retreating to a safe distance. It was obvious that he was getting frustrated. Quite honestly so was I, though I would never admit it.

"Come on, Burstman! Hit him!"

"I'm trying!" He snapped back.

"Mini bomb battle chip in! Download!"

That was an easy dodge and using the blast as a smokescreen dashed forward and kicked his legs out from under him before he could shoot into the dark smoke. Another kick sent him falling back. Just enough time to put some more distance between us. This was pathetic. Not only could I not do any real damage without at least one chip, but he couldn't even hit me. This was going nowhere. Burstman pulled himself up with a growl.

"That's it. This is Over. Lock on battle chip in! Download! Cannon battle chip in! Download!"

So much for not taking any damage. If I evaded it would curve into me anyway. I crossed my arms in front of me to shield my face as I took a ready position. Impact in 2… 1...

"Barrier battle chip in! Download!"

The blast was taken by the shield allowing me to get out unscathed. Thank you, Claus… Just don't stop now.

"Sword battle chip in! Download!"

Finally. Something familiar. I raced forward ready to dispatch the navi. He fired at me and I easily evaded as I kept moving forward. His shots were sloppy and if I kept having to battle navis at this level I was going to be out of practice by the end of the week. Enzan was not going to be happy. One slash was all it took. I could hear Claus cheering as I slid to as stop. I slowly drew out of the battle position and let go of the data that had given me the welcomed blade. Then I returned to the PET.

"Take that! I told you, you weren't so great!"

"Not fair! You cheated!"

"I did not! We beat you fair and square!"

"Yours is overpowered! I bet your dad upgraded it somehow!"

"He did not! I bought him with my own money! You just suck!"

"What store would sell You a navi?!"

"What store would sell You a navi?!" Claus countered making the other boy give him a dark glare.

"Claus… we… we should get back to class." Lucas cut in after a second before grabbing his arm.

He pulled him away and left Danny behind with his friends who didn't seem the least bit concerned with what had just taken place.

"You know getting into another fist fight is going to get me in trouble too."

"I wasn't going to hit him."

"That's what you said last time."

"He insulted my sister."

"You don't have a sister."

"Well he shouldn't be insulting her anyway."

"You… nevermind. I'm not going to ask what's going on in your head. Just don't hit him, ok?"

"Only if he deserves it."

"Don't hit him at all. You won. Taught Danny a lesson. It was a great show. Be happy and forget it."

"Yeah we really showed him, huh? I can't wait to tell mom."

I sighed quietly.


	6. I AM BACK!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Blues has trouble with Claus.

Claus was going on and on to his mother about the day's events. How he beat Danny and she was smiling and listening like any mother. Giving exaggerated reactions every once in awhile that Claus just ate up. I was starting to worry he was going to knock over the lamp with his wild gestures. I doubted that his mother would get too upset, but there was always the possibility of him cutting himself. Children were so difficult to deal with and I was discovering that Claus was no easier to deal with than Enzan was. Each child had their own challenges it seemed.  
“Claus, you’re going to break the lamp if you’re not careful.”  
“Huh?”  
“You could cut yourself if it breaks.” I elaborated evenly and he just smiled that ridiculously wide smile of his.  
“I won’t. I haven’t knocked it over yet. Just ask mom.”  
“He hasn’t knocked This one over, but we had a standing lamp in here once.” She hummed a laugh.  
“Mooom!”  
His whining only seemed to amuse her further. The more she laughed the more he whined. The circle was broken by the opening of the garage door. Claus jumped around rather than turned. His mood skyrocketed back up at the sound. A man with light brown hair and almost caramel colored eyes walked in. His uniform suggested local police and the way Claus reacted suggested that he was very familiar with this man. As with his mother with the way he just walked in. This man was most likely his father, less likely his uncle. But either way I had another clue to where I was. If I could just figure out what station he worked at I could narrow down the district. I was broken out of my train of thought by Claus seeming to offer me up to the man.  
“Look! See?!”  
“So you did go and get yourself a navi. Couldn’t wait a couple years, huh?”  
He didn’t appear angry. He was smiling, but I felt rather scrutinized under his gaze.  
“Well I suppose if you went to all the trouble to get one yourself you can keep him, but don’t go losing him.”  
“I won’t! We even had our first battle today. We beat Danny!”  
“Did you now? So where did you find him? That crack there doesn’t look good.” The man traced a crack I couldn’t see.  
“Ignis had him. Someone abandoned him. I saved him. Ignis was going to take him apart.”  
“Huh. How about we get this fixed up?”  
“Really? We can do that?”  
“Yep. I’ll just take him out when you’re at school tomorrow and we’ll pick him up later.” He handed the PET back to Claus.  
The rest of the night went much like last night. I assisted Claus with his homework. Claus talked with his now confirmed father and mother at dinner. I wasn’t spoken to much to my relief. I didn’t belong here. My own goal was going to break their sons heart after all. I caught brief glances at the thin, green navi his father had at his hip. He was definitely a part of this family with the way he was talked to. It made me feel a pang of homesickness.

“Claus.” I spoke as he readied for bed.  
“Yeah, Blues?”  
I hesitated. I couldn’t let this go on. He needed to know. It was better I break his heart now than him finding out the day when Enzan came for me. Maybe I would anger him enough to make him want to let me go… No… Claus wasn’t like that. But this needed to be done.  
“My operator didn’t abandon me like you seem to think. There was an… incident and he dropped me by accident. There is a chance that he will come looking for me and I will leave you. It would be best-”  
“No.”  
“Claus, please listen to me.”  
“You were sold to Ignis.”  
“I was found and sold for spare change, yes, but I’m… just lost.” I waited a moment to see how he would react. He was just staring at me with this almost crushed look with no sign of speaking so I continued. “I never wanted to hurt you like this. You’re a kind child Claus and sure to be a great netbattler with your personality and drive, but that will have to be done with another navi. That is not for me to witness. My operator-”  
“He’s not coming. He left you.” He protested. “If he wanted you he would have picked you back up.”  
“It… was complicated. He couldn’t just pick me back up.”  
“If he wanted you he would have found you. I saved you. You would have been deleted if I didn’t save you.”  
“Yes and I am very grateful for your actions.”  
“I bought you. I saved you so you’re mine now.”  
“Claus, I miss home. I miss my operator.”  
“Why do you care so much? He wasn’t going to come and buy you from Ignis. He didn’t pick you back up. Shouldn’t you be mad at him?” He looked like he was going to cry now and the guilt that rose within me was unpleasant to say the least. “This can be your home now. Don’t you like me? Don’t you like mommy?”  
“Of course I do. You’re both wonderful people.”  
“Then you should be happy here. I won’t ditch you like he did. I promise.”  
“I know that you would never do anything like that to anyone. This isn’t about me not liking you or your family. I have my own family that I need to return to.”  
“He left you! You’re my navi! This is our family!”  
And he was crying.  
“Claus, please don’t cry.”  
“This isn’t fair. You’re mine. He left. You shouldn’t want to go back.”  
“I suppose I can be your navi until he comes to get me. Just stop crying, please.”  
“He’s not going to come back.”  
I just sighed. This was going to much harder than I thought. But first thing I had to do was get him calmed down and into bed for school tomorrow.


	7. Another

This was extremely unnerving. Laying on the seat of his car while he drove. That thin green navi they referred to as Dashman staring at me from his perch. I kept my expression neutral as per usual. My gaze wandered to examine his operator and then back to Dashman. Still quietly watching with a curious expression. His eyes however lead me to believe he was judging me. My view of the outside was very limited from my position. I could just make out the tops of buildings and the glows of streetlights, maybe a few people who crossed the road close by, but nothing more. When I looked back toward Dashman it was obvious he hadn’t moved in the slightest. I was beginning to get the feeling that he didn’t like me for whatever reason. Neither did his operator I’m sure.  
“So what’s your story then?”  
I wasn’t sure whether or not I was relieved by the silence being broken. Maybe they’d help me get back to my own operator and be glad to be rid of me if they did dislike me as much as they seemed to. There was also the possibility that they wouldn’t want me upsetting Claus and threatening me or smashing me himself, but they had a much lower percentage with what I had seen so far. This may be my only chance. They could take care of Claus and explain the situation should they decide to assist me.  
“I got separated from my operator and then sold for spare change by those that found me.” That got a glance from Dashman’s operator. Nothing sinister. Just plain curiosity. “You shouldn’t be taking this time to fix me when my own operator can easily. I’m sure this isn’t cheap.”  
“... Separated how?”  
“There was an explosion within the shopping center in the northern part of the city. He dropped me and I fell.”  
“Ah.” His operator spoke up. “That was a big thing. I was down there for an investigation. It was no accident that was for sure. So many people died that day. I wouldn’t get your hopes too high. Didn’t get the list of all the casualties, but if you were that close there’s a chance he may not have survived.”  
“I am aware. Though I would like to try and find out. Would you be willing to help me?”  
“Not sure we’ll be of much help. You’re a long way from home now if you’re from the city. We don’t go down there often.Oakfield is a pretty out of the way place.”  
“I see.”  
Oakfield. A country town or a town on the outskirts of the city. That would explain why I found nothing even remotely familiar anywhere. But at least I knew my general location. It was at least something to go on and maybe I could get him to help me a little more. He couldn’t be that hard to track down after all.  
“If I may be so bold could you, if you ever find yourself in the area, try and find Enzan Ijuuin?”  
“I suppose I could try. And what of Claus? Does he know of this?”  
“I’ve tried to speak to him about it. I explained that my operator may come for me at some point, but he didn’t want to hear any of it.”  
“I would assume so.”  
It was quiet for a time. Just the sound of the occasional passing car and people outside. The nagging worry that Enzan had not survived came back, but I shook it off. Now was not the time to doubt and be overcome by emotion. I needed to plan. To find a way to get a message across somehow if he couldn’t get to the city anytime soon. If I could get into the net and get pointed in the general direction of the city I had to come across someone who could pass something along or help guide me back. Then he could come get me.  
“Well until he’s found or confirmed dead, just take care of Claus and we’ll go from there, alright?”  
“Of course, Sir.”  
“Che. Lucien Keiki.”

The feeling of just blinking to find that so much time was missing like I hadn’t existed in that span at all was awful and was something I’d rather not feel again. It was disorienting and the sudden input of data that had just stopping flowing in suddenly coming back made me dizzy to the point I had to sit down. I had missed several hours it seemed. The man who was still poking and prodding at something I couldn’t see looked bored and was loudly smacking his gum making my ears ring after the apparent silence I didn’t even remember. Then he stood and set me in a glass case with multiple other navis that appeared to be well taken care of despite the clutter in the rest of the work area. Plastics, metals, chips, paint, polishes, and many other items were scattered about and lain on top of each other. The lock made a loud click as it slid into place and then he was off. It was quiet and ever so slowly my dizziness left me and I found I had a while to wait until school let out.  
With a soft sight I prepared myself for the long wait. There was some light chatter between navis that couldn’t see each other about their operators and how they had come to be damaged. Though boredom seemed to be driving them to converse as it would taper off for a while before someone brought up something else or asked a question. This was going to be a long few hours.


	8. 8 and what not

The ride back to the house was much more eventful. Claus was rather excited to see that the PET was in better condition now. Thanking his father repeatedly before going on about his own day. I was only half paying attention to their conversation however. I was trying to figure out how I was going to get into the net. How I was going to make the idea of going into the net more exciting to Claus. How if I did get in how I was going to talk to another navi without raising suspicion and angering said child to the point he wouldn’t let me into the net ever again.  
The idea of a battle would no doubt grab his attention. Even if it was just virus’ it would no doubt be more enticing than my just wanting to go into the net. A little searching and I could probably figure out just where Oakfield was located and I could figure out a way to the city from there. How long it would take I wasn’t sure, but I doubted that I would be able to make it there and back within a time span that would be even remotely reasonable for a virus check. Then there was the fact that small virus’ were pretty much everywhere. If we were fighting every single virus that I came across then I would never be able to get there. There were usually data streams that connected each library together to trade and update information. That would be a little faster, but full of virus’ and checkpoints. Checkpoints that would give away my location via a ping and message at each checkpoint to the PET if I couldn’t find a way around. Then there’s the train stations that hold the same problem and have higher security and firewalls, but there were guards in those areas as well. Depending on the level they could pass a message on for me. I just had to hope they weren’t the ‘drone’ types.  
I suppose I could try the library first. I could use the excuse of looking for research or examples to help him study. That would be the least suspicious. But I’d have to move quick. I couldn’t waste any time finding paths around checkpoints and solving puzzles and not come back with anything to show for it. Even though he was a child he wasn’t stupid. He knew I wanted to go back. He’d figure it out. I couldn’t make my desire to get into the net too obvious either. I had to be subtle.  
“Hey, Blues, guess what?”  
Claus snapped me out of my train of thought and I looked up at the smiling boy. “I assume something pleasant happened?”  
“I didn’t flunk my english test. Look.” He shoved the paper in front of the screen. It was far too close for me to make out much, but he appeared to be improving from what I Could see though there were still multiple red marks. “Teach says I need to work on my hyperbowls and stuff, but I got a C-.”  
“Hyperbole.” I corrected automatically though he didn’t seemed to care.  
“Mommy’s going to be so happy too. I can’t wait to show her.”  
“I’m sure she will be, but there is still a lot of room for improvement.”  
“Oh come on. I’m passing now. This is good.”  
“A C may be a passing grade, but it won’t get you into a college you may want in the future or job.”  
“Mommy and Daddy wanted me and were nagging at me to raise my grade and I did.”  
“I’m sure they would be even happier to see it even higher. They will be proud should you rise above their expectations like they know you can. Like I know you can.”  
“I suppose… But it’s gonna be hard.”  
“Net Battling can be hard. Will you quit at that should you face a strong opponent?”  
“No.”  
“Then why quit at this? We can study for half an hour on your english after school and I’m sure you will improve. Then we can do whatever you want after words.”  
“Ok…”  
“Your parents will be proud.”

The studying was proving more difficult for me than it was for Claus. He was hard to keep focused. Wanting nothing more than to do anything, but this. He did well when he was focused, but to get to that point took a lot of effort and was becoming mentally taxing on me though I would never admit it.  
“This doesn’t make any sense.” He whined and I sighed.  
This was the third time that we had gone over this. He got it yesterday so he was just making this difficult on purpose or he wasn’t paying as much attention yesterday as it seemed. But maybe this was my chance.  
“Maybe I can find something that can help you then.”  
“Like what?” He perked up.  
“If you could let me into the net I can find something to help you at the library. Until then why don’t you have a snack. How does that sound?”  
“Ok!”  
He had jumped at the chance. I couldn’t waste this. The connection was freeing. A breath of fresh air after being trapped for so long. I was tempted to just leave now, but that would be suspicious.  
“I will be back soon. Please try not to forget everything before I return.”  
“I won’t! Hurry back!”  
I left and ran. I didn’t have time to savor the freedom. I just need to run. Get this done quickly before my time out grew to be suspicious. I had to get something for Claus first so I wouldn’t be struggling to find one later. I couldn’t come back with something inadequate. Claus was still counting on me to help him after all. He was just a child. So the moment I found my way to the library I made my way to the nearest datafall and started searching. It thankfully didn’t take too long to find something that would hopefully be of help before I was off in search of the stream.  
Like I had suspected there were checkpoints and virus’ in between them. The paths that led around them were filled with sentry drones and complicated paths. More than once I found myself running into at deadend. It would take many trips for me to have these halls each mapped out and getting even slightly close to my destination. It would take patience and very rarely did I run out of that. I just hoped that Enzan would be ok without me for just a while longer.


	9. More

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The chance of a lifetime.

My days were filled with assisting Claus and searching for excuses to get into the net. Though I hadn’t gotten a chance in several days to do so. Claus had pitted me against multiple inexperienced navis in that time and each victory seemed to inflate his ego even further along with his attachment to me. He brought me everywhere and that little fact was hindering my escape efforts. He was always moving, never giving me much time to myself to map out the maze in between checkpoints. So next came plan B.  
“Claus?”  
“Yeah, Blues?”  
“Would you like to practice net battling? There are plenty of virus’ we can use in the net to practice teamwork.”  
“Practice on virus’? Wouldn’t it be better to practice on other navis?”  
“Each virus has its own attack patterns. Some are more difficult than others and we could learn some things from them. Besides wouldn’t we have an advantage in the next battle if we could read each other better?”  
“I suppose.” He seemed hesitant.  
“Please, Claus? I want to practice with you. We can start with the easier ones that may be lingering in the house.”  
“Ok. Mommy would like to know the house is virus free.”  
Guilt was repeatedly jabbing at me each time I got him to battle with me on the net. Getting sharper the further from the house we got each individual time he decided that we should battle. He was initiating it now whenever he was bored, but that didn’t erase the fact that I was tricking a child to help myself. He was so happy even. Happy that we were ‘getting along better’ and stating that we were going to be friends forever. The guilt got even worse when he said that he loved me and he had always wanted a brother one night. I was going to be dead in the water with guilt by the time I reached Enzan.  
“Are those navis?”  
“Not exactly. They’re just programs that help the system run. Those on the other hand are sentries specifically made to protect the trains from being attacked by virus’. If any virus’ got to the system then a glitch could occur and multiple things could happen, none of them good.”  
“Oh.”  
“Are you tired? Why don’t you go get a drink from the water fountain while I scout for virus’. I’ll call for you should I find any.”  
“Ok. Careful though. There are a lot of shockys here.”  
“Don’t worry about me. I will be fine. I will stay within the checkpoints.” I reassured and he clipped me to his hip before going off to get his drink.  
I took off running through checkpoint after checkpoint. Each ping that was sent back to the PET nearly made me flinch. There had to be someone here that could pass a message or something. A program that moved to other stations at least, but each question led to nothing, but disappointment. None of them had seen anything outside of their station. None of them ever left to give updates to their company. My limited time alone was barely a few minutes and I had nothing to show for my efforts.

I couldn’t believe my luck. A field trip. To the museum in the city. All I had to do was get him to let me into the net and I would be home free if I found anyone I knew. The ride to the museum only took an hour, but that only served to tell me that I would have probably never made it without Claus noticing. This was my only chance. The only one that I was going to get for who knew how long.  
“Claus?”  
“Yeah?”  
“I need an update. May I go to the navi square in the net?”  
“An update?”  
“Yes. I would rather not have the net and the sentries mistake me for a virus, just because I couldn’t get my update in time.”  
And there was that jab of guilt again. Like a searing blade right to my core programming. He seemed to be thinking it over.  
“How long is it going to take. I need someone to talk to during this. It’s So boring.”  
“Not too long. Should you have need of me just call and I will respond and let you know.”  
“Are you going to be ok on your own? What about virus’? You could get hurt.”  
And more guilt. He look far too concerned for me to not feel anything.  
“Don’t worry. There are no virus’ in the square. It is heavily guarded.”  
“Ok. Just be careful on the way there.”  
He let me into the net and I wasted no time. I roamed the familiar open net in search of someone or some way to reach at least one of his friends systems. I just had to leave a message. A hint. So long as I could leave something they could use I had full faith that they could figure it out. Oakfield. Just that place. A place to start. They could investigate and find me so long as I could leave that should I find myself without time.  
I couldn’t take the twists and turns of the net I knew so well fast enough. Then came my savior in the form of a battling Gutsman. Praise his and his netops needs to battle within the net so often.  
“Blues?”  
I nearly cursed. “Almost done. I just need a little longer to complete the download.”  
“Ok… How long?”  
“Just another minute. You can just call me back when it’s done.”  
He seemed to take it at that, but he was impatient. He would no doubt want me back soon. It was taking far too long to reach him. I wouldn’t make it like this. So I risked jumping down to his level, nearly missing and falling into the depths of the deepnet below. The look on the other navis face was nothing short of astonishment.  
“Blues? Where have-”  
“No time. Oakfield. Tell Enzan I was taken to Oak-”  
That was all I got out before I was called back to my PET.


	10. 10

Claus was very upset with me. We hadn’t talked at all the entire rest of the school day nor on the way home. Quite honestly the silence was much better than him sobbing and crying in my opinion. All I had to do was hope that he wouldn’t try and hide me somewhere now that I had gotten into contact with someone I knew. I didn’t know how long it was going to take them to find me, but I had awhile to wait yet. Oakfield though not big was still a town full of people and I hadn’t gotten to tell him who I was with. They didn’t know who they were looking for. A child, an adult, an enemy that was hidden away. They had nothing other than the name of this town. I was sure they would come though. And they would find me eventually. All I had to do now was wait and hope that Claus would find it in his heart to give me up when the time came. Not just for me, but for Enzan as well.  
I looked up as Claus threw his bag into the corner with far more force than was necessary. That wasn’t reassuring in the slightest. Then he dropped me on his nightstand as he sat heavily on his bed to glare down at me. Silence dominated the area. No sound in the entire house. No dishes being done or vacuum as his mother was out shopping. His father was no doubt out working yet so it was just Claus and I. He gave a heavy sigh out of his nose, but made no move to speak for another few minutes.  
“I’m mad at you.” He huffed.  
I said nothing. There was nothing I could say. Nothing that could appease him that wasn’t a lie and I was sure he wouldn’t buy any if I tried to make something up. I had been lying to this child a lot and now that I had gotten my message across there wasn’t any reason to continue.  
“Aren’t you going to say anything?” There was another round of silence as he awaited an answer that he wasn’t going to get. “Fine! I never liked you anyway!”  
Thankfully he didn’t take his anger out on me. Instead he left me in his room alone, slamming the door as he left. I could easily track his path through the house. Down the stairs and into the kitchen before changing course to go into the livingroom. He didn’t come upstairs until after dinner at six. He glared at me again when he entered before starting on the homework his mother told him to do. He worked with his back to me. I made no efforts to help him or talk nor him to me the entire night. He was quiet again the next morning until he got home from school.  
“I’m still mad at you.” He stated and waited like he was expecting an answer again. “Why won’t you talk to me?”  
“There’s nothing I could ever say that would make you any less angry.”  
“How do you know that?” He snorted.  
“Anger is eased by forgiveness and I have no doubt that you have no intention to do so as I won’t apologize for trying to return home.”  
My explanation caused a fresh scowl. I hadn’t been expecting anything less really. I didn’t expect a child to think logically no matter how much I had hoped otherwise.  
“This Is home.” He snapped.  
“This is your home. My home is in the city with my operator Enzan. Please try to understand that.”  
“Why do you hate us so much?! Why do you hate me?!”  
“I have never hated you.”  
“Yes you do! Otherwise you would want to stay! You hate me!”  
I sighed slowly. All he wanted to do was argue it seemed. Why did children have to be so complicated? I couldn’t wait to be home again. Couldn’t wait until this was over.  
“I don’t hate you. If your father lost Dashman and couldn’t find him don’t you think that they’d both be upset?”  
“Yeah, but he wouldn’t lose him! He’s always got him with him!”  
“Enzan also had me with him wherever he went. PETs are small and can become lost like any other object. Your father could potentially lose Dashman and no doubt your father would want to find him as soon as possible, right?”  
“Of course he would!”  
“And what if someone picked him up and wouldn’t give him back to your father do you think that either of them would be happy about that?”  
“No.”  
“Do you think that they should have to give Dashman back to your father?”  
“Yes.”  
“But he they found him, didn’t they? Therefore Dashman is theirs and no longer your father’s.”  
“That wouldn’t be fair.”  
“And do you think what you’re doing to me is fair?”  
Claus was quiet for a moment. “This is different!”  
“Is it?” I asked gently and he scowled before leaving me alone in his room again.

Our… arguments were on and off. At times it seemed that Claus was more sullen and others he was angry. He barely took me anywhere anymore. During those times he told me that Enzan hadn’t come and never would. Other times he would ask me if I hated him and seemed relieved when I told him I didn’t. Sometimes he would ask if Enzan didn’t come if I would stay and stop trying to leave. My answer was always the same. Until I was certain that Enzan had perished I would keep searching. Then he would get quiet again before saying that he would miss me if I left and that would evolve into asking whether or not I would remember him or miss him if I left. Those were complicated questions at the moment. It would all depend on how things went when Enzan came for me. I would either remember him as a child who had grown and learned to think of others or a brat who treated me like an object and refused until the end to let me go. So I told him each time that it would depend on his own actions when the time came. He didn’t appear to like those answers each time I repeated them, but he never said anything more about it.  
Then one afternoon while his mother was out in the backyard watering flowers a knock sounded through the house. Claus thought nothing of it and headed down the stairs with me in hand. In was most likely Lucas as he came by plenty to drag Claus outside, but that never made me any less hopeful that when he opened the door Enzan would be there.  
“Are you Claus?”  
I nearly jumped as I strained to see. It couldn’t be.  
“Why? What do you want?”  
Claus was uneasy and that just fueled my hope and excitement. I was elated. He had found me. I couldn’t resist calling out for him.  
“Enzan!”  
“I want my navi.” Came the cold response.  
“No. He’s mine.” Claus responded and I sighed. So it would be like this.  
“Claus, please.” I tried gently.  
“No, it’s not fair. He wasn’t there to save you when Ignis was going to take you apart. I saved you. This isn’t fair.”  
“Remember what we talked about? Please don’t make this difficult.”  
“But…”  
“Please.”  
He just stared down at me for a while before looking back up at Enzan before looking back at me. “I… I don’t want you to go.”  
“I know. Won’t you do this for me? Let us part on a good note. It would make things much more joyus should we ever meet again.”  
“Do you think we will?”  
“It’s a possibility and I will look forward to seeing how you’ve grown should we meet again.”  
“Really?”  
“Really.”  
He gave a brief smile before lowering his head and offering me up to Enzan who didn’t miss a beat. I felt much lighter now. Enzan paused for only a moment after he turned his back. He sighed.  
“Thank you for taking care of Blues for me.”  
Then he was off again. Claus didn’t say anything. Enzan finally looked down at me when we were within the confines of a black car as it sped back toward the city. He was sporting a new scar on his right cheekbone, but he looked no worse for wear. Whatever concerns I had for him faded when he smiled at me. A relieved smile that I returned.  
“How on earth did you get all the way out here?” He asked with just the slightest bit of humor. “Do you have any idea what we went through to find you? You’ve caused a lot of trouble.”  
“You will have to endure some more trouble I’m afraid. You have no idea how out of practice I am now.”  
“Great. Now we have to waste more time practicing while Netto gets all the glory.”  
“I missed you too.”  
His smile returned and he hugged me to his chest. “I missed you.” Came the soft words.  
Yes.. I was finally home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading! I hope everyone enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!


	11. Junky Bonus Chapter for Everyone

A week of being confined to a bed with Netto and Rockman trying to cheer me up did nothing, but worsen my mood. Blues was out there somewhere where anyone could take him. Who knew what condition he was in. As far as we knew he was injured to the point his life was fading and needed help as soon as possible. Each time they had gone out to search they had come back empty handed and it seemed that Blues was nowhere to be found. But that couldn’t be. He had to be there somewhere. There was a lot of rubble that he could be trapped under. We just had to look. So the moment that I was cleared to be up for short periods of time I made my way down to the site despite the efforts my… friends put in to keep me from overexerting myself with my injuries. There Netto picked out some thing’s that were different since the last time they had come to dig. With anxiety filling me I stretched my financial wings without my father’s consent to get the place thoroughly searched and cleared only to find that Blues wasn’t anywhere within the area. My efforts had only gotten me a scolding from my father and sympathetic looks that I didn’t need nor want.  
Days turned to weeks. Then to months with no signs as to where Blues had gone. I had thought that not finding him at all would be better than finding him broken, but now I just want to know what happened to him. My broken leg was healed and my fractures had vanished as bruises faded. I found I didn’t care so much about healing. Being well didn’t help me find any clues no matter how hard I searched. I was beginning to lose hope.  
Finally on a dull Wednesday afternoon my door was thrown open with a slam. Security quickly following Netto and company through my office door. There was plenty of arguing and the noise was irritating. A sharp order for everyone to either shut up or take it out of my office got the quiet I needed to focus.  
“What is going on? What do you want?”  
“Gutsman saw Blues.” Came the quick response.  
“Where?”  
“In the Net. Said he was taken to Oakfield. Right?” Netto was grinning ear to ear as he looked to his friend for confirmation.  
Blues was alive and in a place called Oakfield. That was all that mattered at the moment. That was where I needed to be then.  
“Cancel my appointments and get me a car.”

My investigation led me to exploring the town. Asking around for far too long before I found myself in an antique shop that was run by an old man.  
“Yeah I was sold a navi. It was pretty damaged, but I sold it to a kid.”  
“Who?” I demanded.  
Blues was damaged and in the hands of some child. Who knew how they were treating him. Blues needed to be found before he was deleted due to some child’s carelessness.  
“Claus Keiki.”  
“Do you know where he lives?”  
“No. I’m not That close to the family.”  
With that I started out at a fast pace before stopping briefly as the man called out to me.  
“Hey. He’s a good kid. Try to keep the damage to a minimum.”  
I stood there for a minute before continuing. Having that name helped me narrow down my search considerably. People here knew each other better than those in the city. He went to a school called Roosenburg. His father was an officer. His mother was an unemployed housewife. He lived on Linden street in the west side of town. I was more than willing to knock on every single door on that street to find him. Thankfully it only took me a couple of houses before I was directed to the correct one. I strode down the street with purpose. I knocked more forcefully than I had on the other doors and I didn’t have to wait long. A brown haired child answered the door, a familiar red PET in his hand. He was surprisingly in good condition, but that didn’t distract me for long.  
“Are you Claus?”  
“Why? What do you want?”  
His grip tightened on the device that I was sure held Blues. My suspicions were confirmed when he called out to me and the child stiffened.  
“I want my navi.”  
“No. He’s mine.”  
That little brat. I was about to snap right back when Blues spoke up. I wanted to just rip him from that child’s palm, but I held my temper for Blues. He was trying to reason with him and I would let him try. So I waited. I was surprised when he held out Blues for me to take. It felt right to have the PETs familiar weight in my hand. With it I turned before pausing. I sighed. I suppose he wasn’t so bad.  
“Thank you for taking care of Blues for me.”  
I was off toward the car where I fell back into the seats, relief weighing me down. Telling the driving to take me home I looked down at my missing navi and smiled. After all this time I finally had him back. The smile he returned eased my mind.  
“How on earth did you get all the way out here? Do you have any idea what we went through to find you? You’ve caused a lot of trouble.”  
“You will have to endure some more trouble I’m afraid. You have no idea how out of practice I am now.” He answered though I could honestly not care any less about that at the moment.  
“Great. Now we have to waste more time practicing while Netto gets all the glory.”  
“I missed you too.”  
My smile returned. There wasn’t anything more to say. We were both ok and going home. Whatever lay waiting for us when we returned we would handle it when got there together. Pulling him to my chest I breathed the three words I felt I needed to say.  
“I missed you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AAANNNDD Goodnight!


End file.
